The Truth About Food Industry Factory Farms, Big Ag, Animals
Tribute To A Dog by George Graham Vest
George Graham Vest (December 6, 1830 – August 9, 1904) was a U.S. politician, born in Frankfort, Kentucky, he was known for his skills in oration and debate. George Vest was a lawyer in Sedalia, Missouri, a Congressman and then a US Senator. He is best known for his "a man's best friend" closing arguments from the trial in which damages were sought for the killing of a dog named Old Drum on October 18, 1869. Vest was asked to represent Charles Burden the owner of Old Drum in the case that would make him famous, Burden v. Hornsby.
In the trial Vest was the lawyer for Burden whose hunting dog, a foxhound named Drum (or Old Drum), had been killed by a sheep farmer, Leonidas Hornsby. The farmer (Burden's brother-in-law) had previously announced his intentions to kill any dog found on his property. During the trial Vest stated that he would "win the case or apologize to every dog in Missouri." Vest's "Eulogy on the Dog" is one of the most enduring passages of purple prose in American courtroom history (this partial transcript has survived):
- "Gentlemen of the jury: The best friend a man has in this world may turn against him and become his enemy. His son or daughter that he has reared with loving care may prove ungrateful. Those who are nearest and dearest to us, those whom we trust with our happiness and our good name, may become traitors to their faith. The money that a man has, he may lose. It flies away from him, perhaps when he needs it the most. A man's reputation may be sacrificed in a moment of ill-considered action. The people who are prone to fall on their knees to do us honor when success is with us may be the first to throw the stone of malice when failure settles its cloud upon our heads.
The one absolutely unselfish friend that a man can have in this selfish world, the one that never deserts him and the one that never proves ungrateful or treacherous is his dog. A man's dog stands by him in prosperity and in poverty, in health and in sickness. He will sleep on the cold ground, where the wintry winds blow and the snow drives fiercely, if only he may be near his master's side. He will kiss the hand that has no food to offer, he will lick the wounds and sores that come in encounters with the roughness of the world. He guards the sleep of his pauper master as if he were a prince. When all other friends desert, he remains. When riches take wings and reputation falls to pieces, he is as constant in his love as the sun in its journey through the heavens.
If fortune drives the master forth an outcast in the world, friendless and homeless, the faithful dog asks no higher privilege than that of accompanying him to guard against danger, to fight against his enemies, and when the last scene of all comes, and death takes the master in its embrace and his body is laid away in the cold ground, no matter if all other friends pursue their way, there by his graveside will the noble dog be found, his head between his paws, his eyes sad but open in alert watchfulness, faithful and true even to death."
1. Wisdom about Animals
“A righteous man has regard for the life of his animal." - King Solomon, Proverbs 12:10
“Ask the animals, and they will teach you,” - Job 12:7
“We can judge the heart of a man by his treatment of animals." - Immanuel Kant
“Until one has loved an animal, a part of one’s soul remains unawakened." - Anatole France
“From beasts we scorn as soulless, in forest, field and den, the cry goes up to witness the soullessness of men.” - M. Frida Hartley
“If you have men who will exclude any of God’s creatures from the shelter of compassion and pity, you will have men who will deal likewise with their fellow men." - St. Francis of Assisi
“The time will come when men such as I will look upon the murder of animals as now they look upon the murder of men." - Leonardo Da Vinci
“Our task must be to free ourselves by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures." - Albert Einstein
“A dog is the only thing on earth that loves you more than he loves himself." - Josh Billings
“He who feeds a hungry animal, feeds his own soul." - Charlie Chaplin
The Latin word translation for “soul” is “anima”.
Tribute To A Dog by George Graham Vest nemmar.page.link/161
1. video: Dominion - documentary film - AFR
Dominion - documentary film - The Aussie Farms Repository
1. Animals Killed Counter - More Than 150 Billion Animals Slaughtered Every Year
View the numbers in the "Animals Killed Counter" at the bottom of our website pages.
You can get the updated source code and details for the Animal Kill Counter at Consider Veganism or the original at ADAPTT.
The Animal Kill Counter was first posted in late May 2008 by Barna Mink, on a website called SFVegan. In September 2008 the Kill Counter was updated by the ADAPTT website by streamlining its code and adding a rough estimation of 90 billion marine animals killed annually worldwide for food. In November 2008 Action for Animals posted on their blog a significantly improved, more comprehensive version with more specific description of the animals slaughtered. In July 2011 ADAPTT supplemented the Kill Counter with estimated kills of dogs and cats for food, chiefly in Asian countries. It is also important to remember all the animals in the meat, dairy and egg industries who are killed but never eaten because their remains go to waste.
Data for the Kill Counter are based on worldwide animal slaughter statistics culled from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations for the year 2003. According to these statistics, about 53 billion land animals are slaughtered annually worldwide. (It should be noted that at the time the numbers were compiled, they were the minimum numbers of animals killed each year. The actual numbers may be significantly greater insofar as some countries or territories either did not report, or deliberately excluded, some statistics.) Of the more than 200 countries researched, the top three - the United States, China, and Brazil - consume a staggering 46 percent of these animals as food. The United States alone consumes roughly 20 percent of all animals slaughtered for food even though it contains less than five percent of the world's population.
It's important to note that, since most of the available data are now multiple years old, these estimates are extremely conservative. The current kill rates are much higher than what is indicated here. Periodically check the ADAPTT website since they post more accurate statistics as they become available. ADAPTT pledges to update its Kill Counter accordingly.
Read more: 1. Animals Killed Counter - More Than 150 Billion Animals...